Great Bombay Textile Strike
Encyclopedia
The Great Bombay Textile Strike was a textile strike
called on 18 January 1982 by the mill workers of Bombay (currently Mumbai) under trade union leader Dutta Samant
. The purpose of the strike was to obtain bonus and wage increases. Nearly 250,000 workers and more than 50 textile mills went on strike in Bombay.
Built in 1887, Swadeshi was Bombay's first textile mill, the first of the factories that spread over Girangaon
, popularly nicknamed as Bombay's "village of mills", in the next decades. By 1982, when Datta Samant led the textile strike, over 240,000 people worked in Girangaon.
which had represented the mill workers for decades. Samant planned a massive strike forcing the entire industry of the city to be shut down for over a year. It was estimated that nearly 250,000 workers went on strike and more than 50 textile mills were shut in Bombay. In August 1982, the city police briefly went on strike, apparently in sympathy with the workers resulting into the army and Border Security Force to be called in to control the unrest. Samant demanded that, along with wage hikes, the government scrap the Bombay Industrial Act of 1947 and that the RMMS would not longer be the only official union of the city industry. While fighting for greater pay and better conditions for workers, Samant and his allies also sought to capitalize and establish their power on the trade union scene in Mumbai. Although Samant had links with the Congress and Maharashtra politician Abdul Rehman Antulay, Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi
considered him a serious political threat. Samant's control of the mill workers made Gandhi and other Congress leaders fear that his influence would spread to the port and dock workers and make him the most powerful union leader in India's commercial capital. Thus the government took a firm stance of rejecting Samant's demands and refusing to budge despite the severe economic losses suffered by the city and the industry. As the strike progressed through the months, Samant's militancy in the face of government obstinacy led to the failure of any attempts at negotiation. Disunity and dissatisfaction over the strike soon became apparent, and many textile mill owners began moving their plants outside the city. After a prolonged and destabilizing confrontation, the strike collapsed with no concessions having been obtained for the workers. The closure of textile mills across the city left tens of thousands of mill workers unemployed and, in the succeeding years, most of the industry moved away from Bombay after decades of being plagued by rising costs and union militancy. Although Samant remained popular with a large block of union activists, his clout and control over Bombay trade unions disappeared.
film directors started making politically relevant films on textile strikes in Bombay, and textile mill strikes have become an important theme of modern day Indian films. Producer Sangeeta Ahir, daughter-in-law of Bombay’s underworld don-turned-politician Arun Gawli
’s sister, is making a film on the Great Bombay Textile Strike worker movement of the city.
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
called on 18 January 1982 by the mill workers of Bombay (currently Mumbai) under trade union leader Dutta Samant
Dutta Samant
Dr. Dutta Samant was an Indian politician and trade union leader, who is most famous for leading 200-300 thousand textile mill workers in the city of Bombay on a year-long strike in 1982, which triggered the closure of most of the textile mills in the city.-Trade union and...
. The purpose of the strike was to obtain bonus and wage increases. Nearly 250,000 workers and more than 50 textile mills went on strike in Bombay.
History of Mills in Bombay
- See main article:Mumbai mills
Built in 1887, Swadeshi was Bombay's first textile mill, the first of the factories that spread over Girangaon
Girangaon
Girangaon was a name commonly used to refer to an area now part of central Mumbai, India, which at one time had almost 130 textile mills, with the majority being cotton mills. Girangaon covered an area of , not including the workers' housing...
, popularly nicknamed as Bombay's "village of mills", in the next decades. By 1982, when Datta Samant led the textile strike, over 240,000 people worked in Girangaon.
Protests
In late 1981, Dutta Samant was chosen by a large group of Bombay mill workers to lead them in a precarious conflict between the Bombay Millowners Association and the unions, thus rejecting the INTUC-affiliated Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor SanghRashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh
The Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh is a trade union for textile mills in Mumbai, India....
which had represented the mill workers for decades. Samant planned a massive strike forcing the entire industry of the city to be shut down for over a year. It was estimated that nearly 250,000 workers went on strike and more than 50 textile mills were shut in Bombay. In August 1982, the city police briefly went on strike, apparently in sympathy with the workers resulting into the army and Border Security Force to be called in to control the unrest. Samant demanded that, along with wage hikes, the government scrap the Bombay Industrial Act of 1947 and that the RMMS would not longer be the only official union of the city industry. While fighting for greater pay and better conditions for workers, Samant and his allies also sought to capitalize and establish their power on the trade union scene in Mumbai. Although Samant had links with the Congress and Maharashtra politician Abdul Rehman Antulay, Prime Minister
Prime Minister of India
The Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
considered him a serious political threat. Samant's control of the mill workers made Gandhi and other Congress leaders fear that his influence would spread to the port and dock workers and make him the most powerful union leader in India's commercial capital. Thus the government took a firm stance of rejecting Samant's demands and refusing to budge despite the severe economic losses suffered by the city and the industry. As the strike progressed through the months, Samant's militancy in the face of government obstinacy led to the failure of any attempts at negotiation. Disunity and dissatisfaction over the strike soon became apparent, and many textile mill owners began moving their plants outside the city. After a prolonged and destabilizing confrontation, the strike collapsed with no concessions having been obtained for the workers. The closure of textile mills across the city left tens of thousands of mill workers unemployed and, in the succeeding years, most of the industry moved away from Bombay after decades of being plagued by rising costs and union militancy. Although Samant remained popular with a large block of union activists, his clout and control over Bombay trade unions disappeared.
Consequences
The majority of the over 80 mills in Central Mumbai closed during and after the strike, leaving more than 150,000 workers unemployed. Textile industry in Mumbai has largely disappeared, reducing labour migration after the strikes.Popular culture
The city was remade by the Dutta Samant-led textile strike. Many BollywoodBollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
film directors started making politically relevant films on textile strikes in Bombay, and textile mill strikes have become an important theme of modern day Indian films. Producer Sangeeta Ahir, daughter-in-law of Bombay’s underworld don-turned-politician Arun Gawli
Arun Gawli
Arun Gulab Gawli , known to his followers as "Daddy", is an alleged criminal turned politician from Mumbai, India. He is based at Dagdi Chawl in Byculla- Saat Rasta, Mumbai...
’s sister, is making a film on the Great Bombay Textile Strike worker movement of the city.
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- directed by Mahesh ManjrekarMahesh ManjrekarMahesh Manjrekar is an Indian director, actor, writer and producer. He is credited with directing the critically acclaimed films Vaastav: The Reality , Astitva and Viruddh... Family Comes First . He has won a National Film Award and two Star Screen Awards...
Further reading
- Murder of Mills from Girgao Bachao Andaolan (26 April 2000)
- Ripping the Fabric: The Decline of Mumbai and its Mills by Darryl D’Monte. Oxford University Press, DelhiDelhiDelhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, 2002 - Rajni BakshiRajni BakshiRajni Bakshi is a Mumbai-based freelance journalist and author. She writes about social and political movements in contemporary India. Her journalism has appeared in many English and Hindi newspapers and magazines...
. 1986. The Long Haul: The Bombay Textile Workers Strike of 1982-83
External links
- An interview with Datta Samant from Rediff.comRediff.comRediff.com India is a news, information, entertainment, and shopping portal. It was founded in 1996 as "Rediff On The NeT" and is headquartered in Mumbai, India with offices in New Delhi and New York City, USA....